Shanghai soup dumplings or xiao long bao are truly one of life’s eating pleasures. I indulged when I went to dim sum at Dumplings Legend in London’s Chinatown.

The dumplings are filled with meat and broth and there is a particular way to eat it. If you bite straight in, you’ll end up with a mouthful of very hot soup and/or a drippy wet chin. Neither is a good look.

Very Stylish Neighbour is our resident foodie and self-proclaimed soup dumpling obsessive. She demonstrated. You place the dumpling in the Chinese soup spoon which already has some vinegar sauce in it. Then you bite off the tip and suck out the soup, before proceeding to eat the rest of the dumpling. Lots of slurping noises and giggling ensues. One of the Fabulous Duo commented on the other’s slurping technique, “ohhh, that almost looks pornographic !” I’ll leave you with that thought.

Haha! I have an image of discarded dumpling skins because you’ve been dissecting them for the stuffing inside. But I’m with you broadly – I’m more about the protein inside than the carb wrapping. So I prefer it when the dumpling carrier is light and doesn’t overwhelm the yummy bits inside !